Accident closes Godwin Blvd.
Published 1:30 pm Monday, September 8, 2008
A tractor trailer hauling approximately190 pigs overturned on Godwin Boulevard Monday morning, closing the roadway to traffic for more than seven hours Monday.
Several hogs were killed when the truck hit a power pole and overturned near the intersection of Godwin and Kingsdale Road around 9 a.m., said Debbie George, spokeswoman for the city. The driver of the truck, James E. Carter, 48, of Warsaw, N.C., was not injured.
Approximately five hogs escaped from the truck but were rounded up in the surrounding area throughout the day, George said.
An animal recovery team from Murphy-Brown, which included a veterinarian, spent several hours transferring the animals to other trucks, George said. The Chuckatuck Volunteer Fire Department stayed on the scene and sprayed the pigs several times with water to keep them cool.
According to police, the accident happened when Carter, who was traveling north, came up behind a vehicle stopped to make a left turn off Godwin. To avoid striking that vehicle, he ran off the right side of the road and struck a power pole before stopping in the ditch.
Carter was charged with one count of reckless driving/failure to maintain proper control.